What is Hospice?

Hospice is primarily engaged in providing care and services to terminally ill individuals and supporting the patient’s family caregivers. Terminally ill individuals are individuals having a medical prognosis in which the individual’s life expectancy is six months or less if the illness runs its normal course. Hospice care addresses the patient’s physical, emotional, social, and spiritual needs.

Where are Hospice services provided?

Most people receive Hospice services at home. People who reside in assisted living facilities or nursing homes can receive hospice care there as well. In these types of settings, the Hospice care may be considered in-home since the facility is the patient’s home. Although Hospice programs are staffed by doctors, nurses, and other professionals, the primary caregiver is usually a family member or friend who is responsible for around-the-clock supervision of the patient. For care given in the home, this person will need to be with the patient most of the time and will be trained to provide much of the hands-on care. The services that are provided are adjusted as the situation of the patient and caregiver change over time. For care given in a facility, a primary caregiver is still needed but the facility’s staff will help provide some of the physical care, including bathing, dressing, toileting, eating, and other needs depending on the type of facility.

When is Hospice appropriate?

Hospice is not just for the last few days or weeks of life, but rather this service is designed to provide care for a patient’s last six months of life. Discussions about Hospice are common when an individual experiences one or more of the following:

  • Multiple visits to the Emergency Room or frequent admissions to the hospital in a short period of time

  • Sleeping in a chair or bed most of the day

  • Shortness of breath while at rest

  • An increased number of falls within a six-month period

  • Unexplained and progressive weight loss with a significant difference in the way clothes fit

  • Recurring infections requiring antibiotic treatments

  • A significantly rapid decline in mental abilities due to stroke, dementia, or other cognitive disorder

  • Symptoms such as pain or shortness of breath that have worsened or have become unmanageable despite attempts to treat.